CCCD

1.“ Culture is a fuzzy set of attitudes, beliefs, behavioural conventions and basic assumptions and values

2.… that are shared by a group of people,

3.… and that influence each member’s behaviour

… and each member’s interpretations of the ‘meaning’ of other people’s behaviour.”

assumption--> we think we know but don't really know! !DANGEROUS!

Interpretation --> not looking in eyes (being shy or polite?)

• Culture systemises the way people do things and thus avoids confusion.
• Culture is a verb (Street, 1991)
• Culture is an evolving connected activity, not a thing (Fay 1996)

believing that the people, customs, and traditions of your own race or nationality are better than those of other races

An acquired ability to see many values and behaviors as cultural rather than universal.

Acceptance: In this first stage of ethnorelativism, people begin to recognize other cultures and accept them as viable alternatives to their own worldview. They know that people are different from them and accept the inevitability of other value systems and behavioral norms. they no longer see other cultures as threatening, wrong, or inferior. People in the acceptance phase can be thought of as “culture-neutral,” seeing differences as neither good nor bad, but rather as a fact of life.

Adaptation: During the adaptation phase, people begin to view cultural differences as a valuable resource. Because differences are seen as positive, people consciously adapt their behaviors to the different cultural norms of their environment.

Integration:  In this stage, people accept that their identity is not based in any single culture. Once integrated, people can effortlessly and even unconsciously shift between worldviews and cultural frames of reference. Though they maintain their own cultural identity, they naturally integrate aspects of other cultures into it.

Once you have progressed to an ethnorelativistic view of cultural differences, you will in essence be bicultural. You will revel in cultural differences, and be able to effortlessly take on subtle characteristics of the local culture. Your intercultural sensitivity will also affect how others view and treat you. Being trusted and accepted by local people into a culture you have recently come to know and accept will be thrilling and fulfilling, and will allow you to be a more effective volunteer

Culture cannot be studied independently from society

Culture is not a neutral phenomenon operating independently of power structures and social hierarchies

Nationality is useful for identifying difference but in no way a framework for analysing culture (However, many people seem to stop at nationality when evaluating Others)

We need to...

• not reduce cultural identity into national stereotypes
•  be aware that the representation of cultural Others in the press, books etc. can play in forming our own stereotypes (unless careful)
• go beyond nationality when exploring what culture and cultural identity are

We cannot reject ‘national cultures’ as such, since they can be a vital source of identification in today’s global village

The interaction pathway is made up of complex systems:

• Comprised of feedback loops and many elements or agents, which interact
  • The strength of the interactions changes over time.

Therefore, there are often multiple routes possible between components, mediated in different ways

• Power
• Trust
• Context
• Bonne Volonté

Power has been discussed as being embedded in culture and language

But what if we separate power from culture and language and consider it as a system?

(Linguistic capital --> english = power)

Power - Tolerance, Power goes with context, Trust... everything goes together

Pragmentism / Respect / Preception - Culture / honesty - trust

The trustworthiness of individuals is an important component in interactions

It creates and maintains stable relationships while reducing uncertainty

The level of trust needs to be established in order to move forward

context matters --> Pizza on a nice plate / Pizza on a dirty plate...

volonté est la capacité à accomplir un acte intentionnel, consciemment

Bonne volonté désir de bien faire, d'être obligeant, serviable (friendly, helpful, or cooperative feelings or attitude.)

Mauvaise volonté résistance à faire quelque chose qui est demandé (Ill will: an unfriendly feeling : a feeling of hatred or dislike)

WTC = willingness (desire) to comunicate

For business success in the international arena, intercultural competencies are indispensable to be able to discern and take into account ones’ own and others’ worldviews, to be able to solve problems, make decisions, and resolve conflicts in ways that optimize cultural differences for better, longer lasting, and more creative solutions

The “Intercultural Speaker” is someone who has an ability to interact with “others”, to accept other perspectives and perceptions of the world, to mediate between different perspectives, to be conscious of their evaluations of difference (Byram & Zarate 1997).

This requires intercultural competence.

The components of intercultural competence are

• knowledge
• skills and
• attitudes completed by values.

The attitudes, knowledge, and skills ideally lead to an internal outcome that consists of flexibility, adaptability, an ethnorelative perspective and empathy.

This internal outcome involves aspects that occur within the individual as a result of the acquired attitudes, knowledge and skills necessary for intercultural competence to some degree.

At this point, individuals are ideally able to begin to see from others’ perspectives and to respond to others according to the way in which the other person desires to be treated.

Individuals may reach this outcome in varying degrees of success.

The summation of the attitudes, knowledge and skills, as well as the internal outcomes, are demonstrated through the behavior and communication of the individual.

How effective and appropriate is this person in intercultural interactions?

• This becomes the visible external outcomes of intercultural competence.

Mindfulness means attending to one’s internal assumptions, cognitions, and emotions, and simultaneously attuning to the other’s assumptions, cognitions, and emotions.

Mindful reflexivity requires us to tune in to our own cultural and personal habitual assumptions in viewing an interaction scene.

The practice and learning of intercultural competences never ends but is a lifelong pursuit, evolving over time through the accumulation of experience, training, and thoughtful reflection upon both

Creates products and resources to help businesses to work successfully across international boundaries

Developed the concept of push and pull competencies for working internationally

http://www.worldwork.biz/ research!!!

Flexible behaviour

• Adapts easily to a range of different social and cultural situations. Has either learned or is willing to learn a wider range of behaviour patterns.

Welcoming strangers

• Keen to initiate contact and build relationships with new people, including those who have different experiences, perceptions, and values to themselves.

Accepting

• Not only tolerates but also positively accepts behaviour that is very different from their own.

Flexible judgement

• Avoids coming to quick and definitive conclusions about the new people and situations they encounter.

Focus on goals

• Sets specific goals and tasks in international projects, combined with a high degree of persistence in achieving them regardless of pressures to compromise, and distractions on the way.

Inner purpose

• Holds strong personal values and beliefs that provide consistency or balance when dealing with unfamiliar circumstances, or when facing pressures that question judgement or challenge sense of worth.

Resilience

• Able to overcome any embarrassment, criticism or negative feedback they may encounter. Has an optimistic approach to life and tends to ‘bounce back’ when things go wrong.

Spirit of adventure

• Ready to seek out variety, change and stimulation in life, and avoid safe and predictable environments.

• Training/education
• Experience
• Reflection